Press freedom group fights to raise awareness of the plight of war reporter Austin Tice who was detained by an unknown group in August 2012 It is very doubtful that you have ever heard of Austin Tice. Yet he is a freelance journalist who has been held captive in Syria since August 2012. Show More Summary

As part of 16-day campaign against gender violence, activists demand stronger penalties for ‘honour’ crimes and an end to imprisonment of at-risk women On 8 October, an 18-year-old man from the Jordanian city of Madaba was charged with killing his sister as she slept after allegedly finding her with a mobile phone the family didn’t know about. Show More Summary

Overnight attacks came despite Moscow promise that Syrian military would halt operations to allow civilians to leave city
Aleppo’s besieged east came under sustained attack overnight despite a Russian statement saying that combat operations...Show More Summary

Egypt’s state-run news agency says an explosion in Cairo has killed six police officers and wounded three more. The explosion early Friday targeted security forces on Al Haram Street, known as “Pyramids road,” the main route from downtown to the Giza pyramids, according to the MENA state news agency. ...

The Times, Sun, Mail and Express refused to attack either the prime minister or the foreign secretary at a time of such sensitivity over Brexit negotiations News editors at BBC TV and ITV thought the Guardian’s revelation on Thursday...Show More Summary

Climate change and human activity are threatening the existence of some of the world’s largest lakes. These photographs document dramatic changes to the landscape in Bolivia, the Middle East, the former Soviet Union, China and west Africa Continue reading...

Nadia Murad, who escaped sexual enslavement by Islamic State, urges UK to follow Germany in offering refuge to Yazidi women and girls persecuted in Iraq Britain could save the lives of thousands of women and girls if it followed Germany’s...Show More Summary

With Islamic State driven from its last urban stronghold in strife-ridden but energy-rich Libya, fresh turmoil is brewing over control of lucrative oil installations. And a polarizing military figure who once enjoyed close U.S. support — Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar — is at the heart of the unfolding...

Iran’s Brain Drain Spreads to Fashion Sector as Professionals Emigrate to Escape Raids and Arrests In the latest attack on the Islamic Republic’s growing fashion sector, a court in Shiraz sentenced 12 industry professionals in December 2016 to prison terms ranging from five months to six years. An investigation by the International Campaign for Human […]

A women’s rights activist and former student who spent nearly two and a half years in prison for her peaceful activism has written an open letter to President Hassan Rouhani reminding him that he has still not fulfilled his campaign promise of allowing expelled political students to resume their studies. “I, Mahdieh Golroo, was accepted […]

Ramzan Kadyrov offers vocal support for close ally Vladimir Putin amid reports of Chechen battalions being readied for transit Chechnya’s strongman leader, Ramzan Kadyrov, has said that troops in the Russian province would be happy to fight the “scum” in Syria if they receive the Kremlin order. Show More Summary

Several Conservatives defend gaffe-prone foreign secretary saying PM should not have been so quick to issue slapdown Boris Johnson’s allies spoke up to defend the under-pressure foreign secretary saying he was right to accuse Saudi Arabia of waging “proxy wars” in the Middle East, despite Downing Street disowning the remarks. Show More Summary

Civil rights defender Arash Sadeghi, who is currently serving a 19-year prison sentence for his peaceful activism, is in “critical and worrying” condition after 45 days on hunger strike in Tehran’s Evin Prison, an informed source told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran. “Arash has lost a lot of weight and he’s suffering […]

Bluntness can be valuable, but foreign secretaries should deploy it for a reason and not on a whim A foreign secretary, Harold Macmillan observed, is forever poised between cliche and indiscretion. It should be no surprise that Boris...Show More Summary

United Nations high commissioner for human rights says bill to retroactively legalise settler homes is a clear violation of international law The UN human rights chief has strongly criticized a bill in Israel that would legalise some 4,000 settler homes in the occupied West Bank, saying it would clearly violate international law. Show More Summary

Since its 1979 revolution, Iran’s Student Day has been marked with passionate speeches given in a less restrained political atmosphere on university campuses. But this year the government has tried to extinguish displays of political dissent by cancelling speeches that had permits while issuing them for “happy shows,” including musical concerts and stand-up comedy. On […]

Phil Shiner has admitted paying an agent to find him clients and acting improperly in claiming UK army mistreated civilians A human rights lawyer who was pursued by the government after an inquiry rejected allegations that British troops...Show More Summary

Composer says school, which will take in 90 new talents from the region each year, is ‘attempt at creating peace through music’ Daniel Barenboim has called it an “experiment in utopia”, a project that marks the culmination of the leading musician and conductor’s life’s work in bringing together musicians from the Middle East. Show More Summary